Senate Panel Weighs Axt for North Dakota Judgeship

Phil Axt, North Dakota's solicitor general, appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee as a nominee for U.S. District Judge for North Dakota.

Updated on Nov. 10, 2026 in Law

Senate Panel Weighs Axt for North Dakota Judgeship

Live Poll

Should the Senate confirm federal judicial nominees during the lame-duck session before new leadership takes over?

The Senate Judiciary Committee considered Phil Axt, a nominee for U.S. District Judge for North Dakota, who was introduced by Senators Kevin Cramer and John Hoeven. President Trump nominated Axt to fill the vacancy created when Judge Daniel Traynor was confirmed to the Eighth Circuit.

Why it matters

The nomination fills a federal district court seat in North Dakota and is among the remaining judicial nominees Senate Republicans are moving to confirm during the lame-duck session. Democrats take control of the Senate on January 3.

The nomination fills one North Dakota federal district court seat vacated by Judge Daniel Traynor's elevation to the Eighth Circuit. The committee's vote and final Senate action on Axt have not yet been reported.

The players

Phil Axt

Axt is the North Dakota Solicitor General nominated to serve as U.S. District Judge for North Dakota.

Kevin Cramer

Cramer is a U.S. Senator from North Dakota who introduced Axt to the Senate Judiciary Committee.

John Hoeven

Hoeven is a U.S. Senator from North Dakota who introduced Axt to the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Daniel Traynor

Traynor is a federal judge whose confirmation to the Eighth Circuit created the North Dakota district court vacancy Axt would fill.

The details

Axt, a fifth-generation North Dakotan who attended Bismarck High School and spent part of his childhood on his family's farm in Sheridan County, currently serves as Solicitor General in the North Dakota Attorney General's Office. He told the committee that Attorney General Drew Wrigley gave him the opportunity to serve in that role.

Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Phil Axt's nomination held in Washington, D.C., on November 10, 2026.
Democrats take control of the Senate on January 3.

Legal Context

Senate Republicans are rushing to confirm the president's remaining federal judicial nominees during the lame-duck session before Democrats take control of the Senate on January 3. Axt's hearing is one of those nominations moving under that timeline.

The nomination determines who would sit on the federal district court in North Dakota, which handles federal civil and criminal cases for residents of the state. Confirmation would place a new judge with a North Dakota background on that bench.

The takeaway

Federal judicial confirmations shape the courts that residents rely on for years, so the outcome of this nomination matters beyond the hearing itself. Following the committee vote and Senate floor action will show whether Axt is seated before the transition in Senate control.